Those who’ve been fans of the Fire Emblem brand must be ready for a heavy dose of nostalgia because this marks the 30-year anniversary since Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon & the Blade of Light was released, which is perhaps the very first game in one of the most legendary tactical RPG series to date. Its first launch was held in Japan on April 20, 1990. And what could be more perfect than marking this fantastic event with some sweet MyNintendo awards featuring the classic characters in Fire Emblem Heroes?
For players interested in true gaming history, Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light are original: that strong romance brought to life the blue-haired beauty now known to the world as Marth and inducted into Smash Bros.
It stayed a Japan-only release all the years until finally, in 2009, it came over into the West thanks to the Nintendo Wii Virtual Console. Now three decades after, Fire Emblem is still bigger than life, with even Fire Emblem Heroes hooking the mobile crowd and Three Houses resounding like the best RPG on Switch.
What states those rewards on MyNintendo? If you happen to have Platinum Points lying around (and let’s be real, who doesn’t?), then it’s high time to cash in with these exclusive offerings from the series: wallpapers, icons, perhaps even some in-game perks, though Nintendo is cagey on the exact details. This tweet actually links to the official page where you can check out the full details, but given how Fire Emblem Heroes loves to shower players with free stuff, it probably wouldn’t hurt to take a look.
But really, since pixelated images of NES sprites back in the days, it was pretty far-reaching by now: almost cast off from all its off-Japan life because of the cancellation of Fire Emblem Awakening on the 3DS.
Since then it has exploded in popularity, and now everyone is talking about Three House as the must-play RPG on Switch. And yes, with all the modern polish, coming home where it all started is magic.
Not a reply on that tweet yet, which is a little surprising. You’d think fans would be jumping over each other’s toes to get to the comments and throw some Marth memes around or beg for a remake of Shadow Dragon (seriously, Nintendo, it’s time). Maybe they’re too busy grinding in Heroes to even notice.
Or perhaps they haven’t quite healed all the scars left behind by a pretty emotional experience-three endings for Three Houses just seems like too much. Either way, here is something cool for a Fire Emblem fan to find deep in dark corridors of memory-just how far the series has come.
So if you have a few extra Platinum Points burning a hole in your pocket, why not grab something special for an anniversary? Not every day hits the big 3-0 for a franchise, and who knows-this could be a sign of something bigger that Nintendo has planned for Fire Emblem’s anniversary. Maybe another game? A collection? A reprint of a Marth amiibo? Okay, maybe not that last one, but a fan can dream.
And until then, happy 30th Fire Emblem. Here’s to another 30 years of tactical battles, devastating permadeath, and far too many shipping debates.
